Yarrabah artists take it up a notch for CIAF

By Isaac Egan, Kier Shorey and Fiona Sewell

The artists of Yarrabah are pushing their art and experience to the next level for this year's Cairns Indigenous Art Fair. At a Cairns cafe, the artists told their stories and exhibited a preview of their work.

Roy Gray says he wanted to keep active in retirement, so he thought he'd try something completely different. "My work is not 'work' at this stage it is just learning, it is a new experience for me to learn and do art. I have retired from work and I have found that I am still interested in living and keeping healthy in mind and body, so I thought getting in to art activities would be something satisfying," he said. (ABC Local: Isaac Egan)

Valmai Pollard says she enjoyed art at school and has recently re-discovered her creative abilities through the UMI arts workshops. "I started at the art centre last year, doing painting, pottery, etching and woodwork. I did visual arts at school, but I didn't carry on, so I have just started again last year," she said. (ABC Local: Isaac Egan)

Edna Ambrym says she gave up her day job to take up painting five years ago and hasn't looked back. "Most of the time I paint, but then I do woodwork, ceramics, lino prints, all sorts. It is good learning other mediums. Before five years ago I hadn't painted since grade eight," she said. (ABC Local: Isaac Egan)

Andrew Garrett Jr. says he did art at school, but football was his focus until recently. "I never thought I'd be following it up now, because of football and all that, but I got interested and back into it. You'll see a lot of screen printing and etching, and I have been doing a lot of paintings as well," he said. (ABC Local: Isaac Egan)

Michelle Yateman says her focus is pottery and she makes all her pieces by hand and without a pottery wheel. "I started doing pottery like 40 years ago, learning from making ash trays. I'd like the young people to get out there and if you are an artist, go for it, don't just sit there, get out and show your work, show what you can do," she said. (ABC Local: Isaac Egan)

Philomena Yeatman says Yarrabah's basket weaving roots actually originate in the Torres Strait. "I learned my basket weaving from my grandmother, but back in 1908 a young Saibai woman and an elderly lady came around and taught the Yarrabah people how to make baskets. They used to make the baskets and the mats and dye it with roots ... everything used to come from in the bush," she said. (ABC Local: Isaac Egan)

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